AP English Literature and Composition - 2010/2011

AP ENGLISH LITERATURE AND COMPOSITION - 2010/2011
J. Livers
Burlington Christian Academy


We will read the following novels/plays in our AP course.  Feel free to begin reading any of these to get a jump start on the course!

-Beowulf
-Selections from Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales
-Shakespeare, Hamlet and Othello
-Moliere, Tartuffe
-Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter
-Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities
-Henrik Ibsen, A Doll's House
-F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby
-Tennessee Williams, The Glass Menagerie
-Chinua Achebe, Things Fall Apart

Here's a link to lots and lots of AP Free Response prompts from old AP exams.  I suggest you look at these and spend some time thinking about how you might respond to the prompts (and whether you are prepared to answer them!) You will probably come to the realization that you need to read many different types of novels so that you will be well-prepared for the free response essay portion of the exam.

http://sb169.k12.sd.us/Prompt%20list%20for%20IR%20with%20AP.htm

Literary Analysis Assignment

As a reminder, your next literary analysis is due in January.  Here's the information:

For each quarter, you should choose a work from one author listed on the back of this page for close reading, personal reflection, and analysis.  One goal of this course is to know several works very well; this will help you as you prepare for the AP exam.

1.        Keep your reflections in a hand-written journal, and please write neatly!  Write at least 300 words after each third of the book.  Consider the author’s topic, audience, use of symbolism, character development, as well as point of view and theme.  You may address one of the characters, argue a point with the author, or write in a more contemplative style.  This portion of the assignment will help clarify your understanding of the reading.  Please do not write your reflections after reading the entire work; rather, stop after each third of the book and write.  The journal entries will be scored for completion, evidence of reading, and fluent writing.

2.       Create a 500 – 600 word essay that analyzes an element from the book that intrigues you.  Support your analysis with evidence from the text.  The essay should be typed (12 point font, double-spaced) and carefully proofread.  This is a formal literary analysis, so the expectation is that it will appear as a thoughtful, polished essay.  This assignment will be scored by a rubric that includes turning completed work in on time, clarity in writing, organization, mature sentence structure, advanced vocabulary level, and supporting evidence that enhances your claim.

I will provide you with notes on how to write a literary analysis.  These notes will serve as a guideline for your writing.  You will develop your own technique as you write, and your writing will become more sophisticated as you revise, revise, and revise again!

An excellent web resource can be found at http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/index.html.  This is a link to UNC’s Writing Center.  In particular, there is an excellent link on “Writing for Specific Fields”.  Choose “Literature” under this category and you will find a great deal of advice as to how to begin writing about literature.

3^rd quarter:  March 21
4^th quarter:  May 27